Great America Theme Park Agrees To Let 49ers Build Stadium, Parking On Site

As part of deal, Cedar Fair agreed to drop its lawsuit seeking to block $1B project

Ending a "contentious four-year battle over parking for a new 49ers stadium, Great America on Friday agreed to allow the team and Santa Clara to build the home field on one of its smaller lots and let fans park next door," according to Mike Rosenberg of the SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS. But it is going to "cost the local football franchise $12.5 million." The deal is "essentially the last and most significant piece needed to solve a stadium parking puzzle, and finally resolves the theme park's steadfast opposition to giving up its land for stadium construction." As part of the deal, Cedar Fair, which "owns Great America, agreed to drop its long-standing lawsuit that sought to block the $1 billion project." Santa Clara, which "owns the land under the theme park, has agreed to give up untold revenue by allowing Great America to keep more theme park profits during boom years." With Cedar Fair's opposition gone, officials said that they can "begin construction within a year as long as the NFL approves $150 million for the plan, as expected." The City Council is "expected to approve" the deal tomorrow. The lot would "provide about 30 percent of the 19,000 parking spots expected to be available within walking distance of the 68,500-seat stadium" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 1/7).

VOICING OPPOSITION: In S.F., Victoria Colliver noted Santa Clara residents "opposed to plans to build a San Francisco 49ers stadium officially started collecting signatures Saturday in an effort to get the city to reconsider its decision to take out an $850 million construction loan." The grassroots group -- Santa Clara Plays Fair -- "hopes to collect 4,700 valid signatures by Jan. 18 to qualify for a referendum or persuade the Santa Clara City Council to rescind its loan commitment, which was approved in a unanimous vote last month." The stadium foes said that details of the financing, "including the size of the loan, weren't disclosed until last month, so the nearly 60 percent of voters that approved the ballot measure to build a new stadium in June 2010 didn't have all the information" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/8).

SALES LAUNCH: The Santa Clara Stadium Authority and Legends Sales & Marketing yesterday announced the launch of Club Seat and Stadium Builders License sales for the new stadium in Santa Clara. The launch will begin with a seat allocation process for current lower bowl Candlestick season-ticket holders. The SBLs for the majority of the 9,000 Club Seats are priced at $20,000 and $30,000. The 49ers also announced pricing for game tickets in the Club sections. The team said that ticket prices on the Club Seats will range from $325-$375 per game, depending on the location. All sellable seats in the new stadium will include an SBL, a one-time payment that gives buyers control of their seats for 49ers games and is good for the life of the building (49ers).